First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGBI) Plans $0.01 Quarterly Dividend

First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGBI) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, May 22nd, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 23rd will be paid a dividend of 0.01 per share by the bank on Monday, June 30th. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 23rd.

First Guaranty Bancshares has decreased its dividend payment by an average of 11.7% annually over the last three years. First Guaranty Bancshares has a payout ratio of 3.3% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect First Guaranty Bancshares to earn $1.22 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.04 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 3.3%.

First Guaranty Bancshares Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ FGBI opened at $9.35 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. First Guaranty Bancshares has a 1 year low of $6.56 and a 1 year high of $15.25. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $8.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $10.13. The firm has a market cap of $120.50 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 0.43.

First Guaranty Bancshares (NASDAQ:FGBI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The bank reported ($0.54) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by ($0.71). First Guaranty Bancshares had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 5.62%. The business had revenue of $56.82 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.90 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that First Guaranty Bancshares will post 0.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Bruce Mcanally purchased 24,615 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $8.47 per share, for a total transaction of $208,489.05. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 145,839 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,235,256.33. The trade was a 20.31% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Edgar R. Smith III purchased 98,460 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $8.47 per share, for a total transaction of $833,956.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 98,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $833,956.20. This represents a ? increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 129,900 shares of company stock valued at $1,108,256 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 46.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Guaranty Bancshares

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in First Guaranty Bancshares stock. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGBI) by 11.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 49,565 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,956 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC owned 0.38% of First Guaranty Bancshares worth $379,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Institutional investors own 39.52% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of First Guaranty Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday.

About First Guaranty Bancshares

First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc operates as the holding company for First Guaranty Bank that provides commercial banking services in Louisiana and Texas. It offers various deposit products, including personal and business checking, savings, money market, and demand accounts, as well as time deposits to consumers, small businesses, and municipalities.